Qui Suis-Je? Mon Autoportrait
In this short unit, we'll do some reviewing and get re-acquainted with each other. We will also practice describing people and events , and explore the following questions through the medium of art- in particular, the work of some of the well known French painters.
What are the distinctive things that make me "me"?
How do I want people to see me?
How can I express my many different sides?
How can I reinvent myself for various purposes or times in my life?
How am I changing from day to day or year to year?
Regardez les trois autoportraits .....Est-ce que vous pouvez identifier Matisse? Picasso? Van Gogh?
Preliminary assignment (in English) to stimulate your thinking about self portraits:
Since the Renaissance, artists have used self-portraits to answer the basic question, Who am I? A mirror or a photograph can tell a person what he or she looks like, but that outer image rarely reflects the whole self. Self-portraiture asks artists to think carefully about personality, character, mood, and physical appearance in order to make decisions about how to represent themselves.
For each self-portrait, the artist must ask: what expression, posture, clothing, setting, colors, texture, style, and material best conveys the real me?
In this short unit, we'll do some reviewing and get re-acquainted with each other. We will also practice describing people and events , and explore the following questions through the medium of art- in particular, the work of some of the well known French painters.
500 Years of Male Self Portraits in Western Art
Art Videos to Enjoy -- includes faces, famous French artists, etc.
Regardez les trois autoportraits .....Est-ce que vous pouvez identifier Matisse? Picasso? Van Gogh?
Preliminary assignment (in English) to stimulate your thinking about self portraits:
Since the Renaissance, artists have used self-portraits to answer the basic question, Who am I? A mirror or a photograph can tell a person what he or she looks like, but that outer image rarely reflects the whole self. Self-portraiture asks artists to think carefully about personality, character, mood, and physical appearance in order to make decisions about how to represent themselves.
For each self-portrait, the artist must ask: what expression, posture, clothing, setting, colors, texture, style, and material best conveys the real me?
Assignment (to be done in English):
1.Read and think about the life of the artist Van Gogh: http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/self_portraits/bio_van_gogh.shtm
2. Next, examine the information and answer the questions on this page (en anglais):http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/self_portraits/act_van_gogh_closer.shtm and do the same with this page: http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/self_portraits/act_van_gogh_anatomy.shtm
Fun Activities :
Mr. Picasso Head
Interactive Mona Lisa ( La Joconde Interactive)
Vocabulary and Grammar for Describing Yourself and Others, and Art Resources: HUGE list of descriptive adjectives rules for using adjectives
making comparisonspossessive adjectives(my, your,etc.)using adverbs to describe actions negative expressions
interrogative adjectives question words
Art Resources (artists, vocabulary for talking about paintings, etc.)
Assignments:
Gauguin portrait comparison and symbolic self portrait assignment
(You will use only French for this assignment, though the directions on the sheets are written in English).Before you begin, study the following:
http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/self_portraits/act_gauguin_words.shtm